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As the week dragged on with no sign of Tia Sharp, the head of the Metropolitan Police considered making a TV appeal for her return.

Sir Bernard Hogan-Howe discussed lending his weight to what detectives believed was a case of a missing schoolgirl. It was hoped that his appearance would lend prominence to the story, as the Olympic Games were dominating the news. The Commissioner was almost led into an embarrassing blunder because of the repeated failure of his officers to find the body of the 12-year-old.

On two occasions, officers failed to notice the “body-shaped” package in the loft